Kid Who Hacked the Pentagon (and RUINED His Life)

Jonathan James, a prodigious teenage hacker known as 'Comrade,' breached NASA and the Pentagon, eventually facing legal repercussions and later dying by suicide after being implicated in a massive identity fraud case he denied involvement in.

• Jonathan James, at 15, was the first juvenile convicted of cybercrime after hacking NASA and the Pentagon.

• His breaches exposed significant government cybersecurity flaws and embarrassed federal agencies.

• Jonathan died by suicide at 24, denying involvement in a later, unrelated major identity fraud case for which he was being investigated.

Jonathan James, a self-taught teenage hacker, gained notoriety as 'Comrade' for successfully breaching NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center and the Department of Defense's Defense Threat Reduction Agency in 1999. Despite his actions not being malicious, his high-profile hacks embarrassed the government, leading to his conviction as the first juvenile for a cybercrime and a six-month jail sentence. Years later, he was falsely implicated in a major identity theft scheme by Albert Gonzalez, a connection that contributed to his tragic suicide at 24.

The Teenage Hacker's Rise

• 00:00:25 Jonathan James, known as 'Comrade,' began hacking as a child, driven by an obsession with computers. By 13, he ran away from home until his parents returned his confiscated computer, having previously hacked his school's system to improve his grades. He developed his skills by infiltrating local AT&T servers and other private organizations, often anonymously alerting them to vulnerabilities, classifying him as a 'grey hat' hacker who rebels against authority rather than seeking profit or harm.

NASA and Pentagon Breaches

• 00:03:45 In 1999, seeking a greater challenge, Jonathan targeted a vulnerable server, breaching the Marshall Space Flight Center under NASA. He downloaded a $2 million software for the International Space Station's climate control, which he deemed overpriced, causing NASA to shut down its entire system. Months later, he infiltrated the Department of Defense's Defense Threat Reduction Agency, installing a packet sniffer to capture credentials and download over 3,300 emails, demonstrating significant vulnerabilities in critical government systems.

Legal Consequences and Impact

• 00:07:20 Following the hacks, Jonathan was confronted by federal agents, admitting to his actions and having his computers confiscated. His crime was seen as embarrassing the government, leading to his sentencing to six months in jail for failing a drug test, making him the first juvenile convicted of a cybercrime. After prison, Jonathan was a changed person, losing his ambition and motivation, opting for a quiet life away from hacking, but the legal system's pressure and his past record continued to affect him.

False Implication and Death

• 00:09:44 Jonathan's past as a notorious hacker made him a target for the Secret Service, who frequently visited him despite never finding evidence linking him to the massive identity fraud hack by Albert Gonzalez, in which a conspirator was identified only as 'JJ'. Fearing another conviction, Jonathan's mental health deteriorated, and he was found dead by suicide in 2008 at age 24, leaving notes denying involvement in the TJX hack and stating he would 'die free.' Many now theorize the true 'JJ' was Stephen Watt, an associate of Gonzalez.